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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-06-06 Min - Board (2) SPECIAL MEETING June 6, 1994 The special meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District was called to order by President Maass at 6:40 PM in the TDPUD Board Room. ROLL CALL: Directors Joe Aguera, John Corbett, Bob Jones, James Maass and Patricia Sutton were present. EMPLOYEES PRESENT. Mary Chapman and Peter Holzmeister. CONSULTANTS PRESENT: Attorney Ed Clifford of Greve, Clifford, Wengel and Paras. CLOSED SESSION- Conference with legal counsel, existing litigation, Government Code Section 54956.9(a), claims of Peter Thompson; Group 3; Robin D. Ogle and Amelia B. Earl; Larry Robertson and Colleen Robertson; Cuong Le, Menh Le, Chan Voong and Denh Luong; Oliver E. Crose, dba Pat & 011ie's; Deborah A. Post; Kristina Martin; Cynthia Bansen and Peter Bansen. The Board adjourned to closed session at 6:41 PM. RETURN TO PUBLIC SESSION The Board returned to public session at 7:09 PM. There was no action taken or direction given as a result of closed session. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:10 PM. TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT . Ja s A. Maass, Pr (dent f Prepared by X. Susan M. raig, Deputy District Clerk smc 616194 Page 1 REGULAR MEETING June 6, 1994 In accordance with District Code Section 2 08 010 the TDPUD minutes are action only minutes All Board meetings are recorded on audio tapes which are preserved perpetuate and made available for listening to any interested party upon their request. The regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District was called to order at 7:15 PM in the TDPUD Board Room by President Maass. ROLL CALL: Directors Joe Aguera, John Corbett, Bob Jones, James Maass and Patricia Sutton were present. EMPLOYEES PRESENT., Mary Chapman, Susan Craig, Steve Hoilabaugh, Peter Holzmeister, Bob Quinn and Dave Rully. CONSULTANTS PRESENT: Attorney John Phelps; Consulting Engineer Keith Knibb; Rick Blumenfeld of Arthur Andersen. OTHERS PRESENT:Alan Harry, Ron Hemig, Bill Satmary,-Bruce Waltrip, Diane Brunson, John Minnis, Hondo Sierra, Bill Austin and several other Hirschdale residents were among those present. HIRSCHDALE WATER SYSTEM - CONSIDERATION OF A REPORT FROM THE WATER COMMITTEE - CONSIDERATION OF FUNDING HIRSCHDALE WATER SYSTEM TREATMENT FACILITY FROM COP FUNDS - CONSIDERATION OF A PROPOSAL FROM SAUERS ENGINEERING TO PERFORM SERVICES RELATING TO DESIGN OF THE HIRSCHDALE WATER TREATMENT FACILITY The water quality in Hirschdale is poor; the well has high concentrations of iron and manganese. The Water Committee discussed this problem at two meetings and is recommending to the Board that a water treatment facility be constructed at Hirschdale to remove iron and manganese and that the District use funds available in the COP acquisition fund which is repaid from rates applied to the entire District customer base. Director Aguera moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that the Board approve construction of a water treatment facility at Hirschdale for removal of iron and manganese, and that the funds for this project come from the COP acquisition fund, the repayment to be supported by rates applied to the entire District. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO MOVED. Transfers from the COP acquisition fund to the general fund for this project need not come before the Board for further approval. Keith Sauers submitted a proposal to perform design services in relation to the Hirschdale water treatment facility. He estimates the project budget to be $122,000. He proposes to perform the design phase for a fee of$12,000 and the construction management phase on a time and expense basis not to exceed $6,000. 616194 Page 1 • Director Corbett moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Board accept the proposal from Sauers Engineering dated May 31, 1994 relating to the Hirschdale water improvements. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. Sauers Engineering will begin the CEQA review within ten days; design engineering will begin about ten days later. The bidding process will take about six weeks - construction is expected to take approximately 120 days. PUBLIC INPUT There was no public input. CONSIDERATION OF CASTING A BALLOT IN THE RUN-OFF ELECTION FOR SPECIAL DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE TO NEVADA COUNTY LOCAL AGENCY FORMATION COMMISSION There was a tie in the election for Special District Representative No. 2 to the Nevada County LAFCo. The two candidates are Ron Sweet, Truckee Sanitary District and George Leipzig of Nevada Irrigation District. The Board is being asked to cast a vote in the run-off election. Director Corbett moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Board cast its vote for • Ron Sweet in the run-off election for Nevada County LAFCo Special District Representative No. 2. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. PROSSER HEIGHTS WELL BUILDING- CONSIDERATION OF PERIODIC ESTIMATE FOR PARTIAL PAYMENT NO. 1 FROM MOUNTAIN ELECTRIC The Prosser Heights well building was damaged by an automobile last fall and the contract for completion of electrical work in the replacement building was awarded to Mountain Electric. The work is now 90% complete. The appropriate amount has been received from the insurance company. DirectorAguera moved that the Board approve Periodic Estimate for Partial Payment No. 1 to Mountain Electric, Inc. in the amount of$10,114; seconded by Director Corbett. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. GATEWAY TANK, A COMPONENT OF THE SAFE DRINKING WATER BOND LAW PROJECT - CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION APPROVING PLANS, SPECIFICATIONS AND CONTRACT DOCUMENTS AND ISSUING A CALL FOR BIDS The Gateway tank site acquisition agreement has been executed. The escrow account is open and the site boundary mapping and setting of the property comers is being done. It is appropriate to re-advertise for bids for the project at this time. • Director Aguera moved, and Director Corbett seconded, that the Board adopt Resolution No. 9425 approving plans, specifications and contract documents and issuing a call for 616194 Page 2 • bids on the Gateway Tank, a Safe Drinking Water Bond Law Project. The bid opening was set for 2:00 PM on July 6, 1994. ROLL CALL: all Directors, aye. SO RESOLVED. CONSIDERATION OF A REQUEST BY WESTSTAR COMMUNICATIONS TO ASSIGN LEASE RIGHT TO GREYHOUND FINANCIAL CORPORATION WestStar Communications leases property from the District at the Northside Well and has erected several satellite dishes and related equipment. WestStar is refinancing their debt; a condition of the refinancing is that they assign interest in their property to Greyhound Financial Corporation. WestStar is asking the PUD to agree to the assignment of the leased premises at Northside to Greyhound. Counsel has reviewed the document and has no problem with it. Director Jones moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Board authorize the General Manager to execute the Landlord's Consent allowing WestStar to assign a lease right to Greyhound Financial Corporation. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. ELECTRIC RATE ANALYSIS - CONSIDERATION OF A PROPOSAL FROM R. W. BECK TO PERFORM SERVICES RELATING TO RATE DESIGN IMPACTS ON REVENUES In order to adopt competitive electric rates and develop strategies for controlling costs • and revenues, the District needs to evaluate its rates and look at the impacts that various alternate rate structures would have on revenues. R. W. Beck has submitted a proposal to perform the necessary analysis. Director Corbett moved that the Board approve the proposal from R. W. Beck dated May 24, 1994 entitled, "Phase II - Rate Design Impact on Revenues," with a budget of $19,850 plus out-of-pocket expenses. The motion was seconded by Director Aguera. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. MARTIS 3 ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - CONSIDERATION OF A RESOLUTION APPROVING DOCUMENTS FOR RECONDUCTORING OVERHEAD LINES AND THE INSTALLATION OF UNDERGROUND LiNES AND FACILITIES AND ISSUING A CALL FOR BIDS The Truckee Substation was loaded to 108% of its OA transformer rating during the 1991-92 winter peak loads and 115% of its OA transformer rating during the 1993-94 winter peak load. Transferring load from Truckee Substation to Martis Valley Substation will correct this overload. This requires the installation of the Martis #3 feeder, which includes installing underground facilities and reconductoring and reconstructing overhead facilities. When complete, the Martis #3 feeder will serve a large section of the existing Truckee #2 circuit lowering the load on Truckee Substation. The project is funded in the 1994 budget. • There was some discussion about the bidder qualification section included in the Notice and Instructions to Bidders. Counsel assured the Board this section of the contract 616194 Page 3 • documents was prepared properly. Director Jones moved, and Director Aguera seconded, that the Board adopt Resolution No. 9426 approving specifications and contract documents and issuing a call for bids for reconductoring overhead lines and installing underground lines and facilities on the Martis #3 electric system. ROLL CALL:Aguera, Corbett, Jones and Maass, aye; Sutton, abstain. SO RESOLVED. The Chairman directed staff to keep track of bids received and the bidders'qualifications so the Electric Committee may review the procedure. CONSIDERATION OF THE DRAFT AUDIT OF THE DISTRICT'S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR 1993 The Finance Committee met with staff and representatives of Arthur Andersen & Company on May 10, 1994 to review in depth the contents of the draft 1993 audit. Mr. Blumenfeld was present in the audience and made note of the following: 1) The District just made the 110% debt service coverage ratio required by the 1991 Water System Improvements Certificates of Participation. He suggested the calculation be performed quarterly so that adjustments may be made, if necessary, to assure compliance at year end. 2) The accounting rules required the District to write-off $117,000 which represented the unamoritized expenses relating to the refunding of the 1991 Certificates of Participation. Mr. Blumenfeld said that this was just an accounting rule and that it had nothing to do with the economics of the transaction. While the District owes more in principal now than before the refunding, the District will save a substantial amount of interest expense during the life of the certificates because of the reduced interest rates. 3) The District's overall debt to equity ratio is currently at 55%. A rule of thumb used by lenders is that this percentage should not exceed 60%. There was discussion that this percentage will increase from 55% as Prop 55 loan proceeds are drawn. 4) The balance sheet is pretty strong. The statement of operations reflects a loss of$352,738 for the year. While there were two extraordinary items ($225,000 claim settlement and $117,000 write-off of costs associated with the 1993 refunding of the 1991 COPs), it would not be healthy if this trend continues. The rates may need to be adjusted to cover District costs and allow a cushion. 5) Quite a bit of money was expended during 1993 on plant serving customers and new equipment. The major sources of funds were the general fund, restricted funds and additional debt service. 616194 Page 4 • 6) The REA loan that the District has had for many years showed a balance of $55,000 at 12131193. It was paid off in January of 1994. Paying off this loan has reduced REA's time consuming reporting and audit requirements. 7) As of 12/31/93, the pension plan was short $43,000. This calculation was prepared by the actuary at the end of 1993. The District is scheduled to pay this amount plus the current year's estimated contributions during 1994. It is typical to be over or short in contributions as of the date of the calculation. The District is short this year because the actuary took a more conservative approach on the assumptions he used in the calculations due to the decline in current market interest rates. As the market interest rates improve and the actuary increases his interest rate assumptions, the District may find itself over-funded as it did for many years during the years of high interest rates. 8) There was a discussion by the Committee regarding the reduction in the District's general fund balance from $1,418,720 at year-end 1992 to $921,368 at year end 1993. Mr. Blumenfeld has advised the District to maintain a balance of approximately one and a half to two times its monthly operating costs. The current balance falls below that level. 9) There was also some discussion relating to changing the use of the word "business"to "District;"separating balances relating to amounts due to employees for payroll," and "deferred compensation;" and clarifying the note on "Reserve for Future Meters" to state that as meters are installed, the fund is reimbursing the water department general fund for the cost of the meters. Director Jones moved, and Director Sutton seconded, that the Board accept the 1993 annual audit as prepared by the District's auditors, Arthur Andersen & Company. Further, that the Board authorize payment of the final billing from Arthur Andersen & Company in the amount of $8,500 for the 1993 audit of the District's financial records. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES OF MAY 16, 1994 Director Jones moved that the Board accept the minutes of May 16, 1994 as presented; seconded by Director Corbett. All Directors, aye, with the exception of Director Sutton who voted no. SO MOVED. CORRESPONDENCE Letter from Tony Lashbrook, Town of Truckee, dated May 24, 1994 Note was made of the letter from Tony Lashbrook, Truckee's Community Development Director, agreeing to the creation of the parcel for the Gateway tank site. Letter from Steve Randall, May 18, 1994 616194 Page 5 I • The Recreation and Park District is interested in acquiring additional property for playing fields and toured PUD owned property with the Manager. Mr. Randall's letter notes property they would be interested in developing. Mr. Holzmeister will meet with Mr. Randall to discuss the matter. Letter from James Fieder, May 25, 1994 USDA is again attempting to find a buyer for Stampede power. The price is high and the PUD does not have the transmission path at this time. However, they are only committing to a one year contract, so WAPA will be back next year trying to find buyers again. The District's position may be different then. CONSIDERATION AND POSSIBLE APPROVAL OF BILLS Director Corbett moved, and Director Jones seconded, that the Board approve for payment the bills presented for consideration. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. STAFF REPORT- PRESENTATION OF MARCH FINANCIAL REPORTS A complete copy of the staff report is attached. . Financial reports through March 31, 1994 The Administrative Services Manager provided reports which cover the period of January 1 through March 31, 1994 - 1994 Operating Budget Report, Electric and Water Financial Statements, Statement of General Fund and Investment Report. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Board, Director Aguera moved that the meeting be adjourned at 8:27 PM; seconded by Director Corbett. All Directors, aye, by voice vote. SO MOVED. TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT J es A. Maass, Pre ent Prepared by Susan M. raig, Deputy District Cierk smc • 616194 Page 6